The mainline Super Mario series usually falls into two distinct categories: its 2D iterations and its 3D titles. While both categories tend to share general movement and gameplay mechanics, albeit from a different perspective, enemy types, and even occasionally environments, both also have their own set of unique features that's kept each one relevant for decades. But that doesn't mean 3D Mario games shouldn't take notes from past 2D entries, and Super Mario Land 2 has a lot of great ideas to draw from.
Originally released in 1992 for the Game Boy, Super Mario Land 2 is the sequel to the first ever Mario game on a handheld device, and it still remains one of the best. Following in the footsteps of Super Mario World, Super Mario Land 2 introduced handheld players to a bold new art style, a new hub world design, and a slew of new platforming mechanics. And with Super Mario Land 2 back in the zeitgeist thanks to Nintendo Switch Online, it's the perfect time to look at just what made it so great as well as what a modern 3D Mario game could learn from it all these years later.
Super Mario Land 2 Should Be Used As a Blueprint for a 3D Mario Game
Super Mario Land 2 has the perfect premise for a lighthearted 3D Mario game. After returning to the Mushroom Kingdom after defeating the alien antagonist of the first game, Mario finds out that his jealous counterpart Wario has stolen his castle from him, and he's scattered the six golden coins needed to unlock the castle gates across the different lands. It's simple, but it's effective, and it's a great first introduction to the character of Wario. This premise is perfect for a 3D Mario game, with its simple narrative easily setting up the conflict. It would also be great to see Wario take on the role of antagonist once again, as he isn't often seen in the mainline Super Mario series. Including Wario adds a tongue-in-cheek tone to the whole experience, and that'd be perfect for a 3D Mario title.
The overall level design of Super Mario Land 2 also lends itself naturally to a fully-fledged 3D adventure. Super Mario Land 2 contains seven distinct worlds for the player to explore, each with its own set of levels. Each of these worlds is completely different from the last, with Tree Zone's gigantic bug-infested woods being completely different from Turtle Zone's aquatic environment, which is completely different from Pumpkin Zone's Halloween-inspired world. While recent 3D Mario titles like Super Mario Odyssey do have fairly different biomes, they're not nearly as varied as Super Mario Land 2's.
It would also be great to see Super Mario Land 2's hub-world be translated into a 3D environment. In most 3D Mario games, the player has an extremely limited hub-world, with it usually only acting as a set of gateways to other worlds and missions. Even the best 3D Mario games, like Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Odyssey, are guilty of this. Instead, it would be great to see a fully-fledged hub-world in a 3D Mario game, similar to Peach's Castle in Super Mario 64. This hub-world could take inspiration from Super Mario Land 2, allowing players to access shortcuts between worlds and levels.
Super Mario Land 2's hub-world was also home to a casino, in which players could bet their coins for additional lives. While the subject of gambling in a kid's game - even using in-game currency - is a little dicey, it would be interesting to see a mechanic like this appear again in a 3D Mario game, letting players earn collectibles and power-ups with their coins.
